Shem and Ila On The Ark
by gabbygrl247
Summary: A prologue to my story Shem and Ila After The Ark.
1. Chapter 1

-Shem-

All I could register was that it was dark. I was wet and cold, but being huddled up against Japheth and Ila was keeping me warm. We could hear Mother calling for Ham on the reptile deck almost as clearly as we could hear the yells of the men that I could assume were fighting father. Japheth was crying and I could hear Ila whispering soothing words while she clung to me.

It was in a fraction of a second that the boat shook. I clung to Ila as she clung to Japheth as we were flung in the air. The three of us fell with a thud and while Japheth screamed for Mother, I held Ila close. We finally felt Mother come up to us, and just as we were huddling close, the hatch door was flung open to the view of Father, on his knees and covered in blood.

As a child, I had always thought the only things that would frighten me the most were the men that Father had told Ham and me about; these were the type of men whom would kill not only beasts, but one another for pleasure. But as I gazed up at my Father, he was the only thing in the world that caused me to feel fear. He got up and with a grunt and stumbled off to where I knew his workshop to be. Mother asked Ila to take Japheth and get him to sleep and wondered off to find her husband.

"You should try and find Ham," Ila said to me, "He might not want to talk to Mother but I see no reason he would not want to speak to you."

"Why is Ham upset?" Japheth asked as innocently as a ten year old boy could.

"I am about to go find out." I told him. "Do not let what has happened today disturb your sleep."

"I won't" He said proudly.

And as he walked off to his tent with Ila, I left to go find Ham.

-Ila-

After the horrific events of the past few hours, I was surprised at how easily Japheth had fallen asleep. I suppose when you are a child it is easy to forget; although something's will never be forgotten. Until I Shem and I had started sharing a tent, I found sleep almost impossible. Every time I would close my eyes, I would see the faces of my family members after they had been slaughtered.

But as I stared at Japheth innocent sleeping form, I allowed a smile to creep upon my face. I had been blessed by Methuselah earlier this day, and he had somehow healed my insides; allowing Shem and I to consummate our marriage. Even though we had been married almost three years, due to the severity of my injuries, we could never lie together, but now I was cured, although bearing children would never be a possibility.

I jumped when I heard Mother speak from behind me, breaking me away from my thoughts.

"Thank you Ila." She said.

"Mother you nearly frightened me to death." I stuttered, a hand trying to calm down my erratically beating heart.

"My apologies Daughter, it has been a long day, why don't you go to sleep yourself." She said.

"I was going to. Good night Mother." I told her, leaving the tent.

When I climbed into my own tent, I noticed Shem was not back yet, so I lied down and somehow managed to drift to sleep.

-Shem-

Finding Ham was not as difficult as I anticipated. He was sitting by the mammals, right next to a pair of beautiful light brown foxes. He must have heard me because he looked up and silently motioned for me to sit next to him.

"What is it like, being married?" He asked.

I looked at him a little bewildered before I answered, "In general, or in my marriage?"

"Why is your marriage different?" He asked. It was always questions when you talked to Ham.

"Well for one, up until earlier today Ila and I had never been more intimate than just kissing. For some reason she felt no pain today. But for another reason we grew up together. I knew everything about her before we were married; Father told me most other people do not get that same benefit." I replied, careful with my choice of words.

"I will never know anyone." Ham said, looking defeated. "I met a girl today, Na'el but as we were getting away her foot got trapped and Father just let her die."

I looked at Ham, horrified by what he had said. The Father I knew would never let an innocent person die.

"Ham, that is not Father." I said.

"Maybe not to you, seeing as he didn't leave Ila to die you would not know how I feel." He spit out before running elsewhere.

I sat in shock for a few moments. As angry as I was at Ham about his last comment regarding Ila, I knew he had not meant it. I could not imagine my Father leaving this girl to die, but I also knew that Father had a conviction like no other, and that Ham had learned what happened when you lied years ago.

When I went back to my tent, I noticed Ila was already there, fast asleep, so I crawled in next to her and I too fell right to sleep.

-Ila-

When I woke the following morning, I felt a pair of strong arms wrapped around me. I knew it was Shem, and as badly as I wanted to stay in his embrace, I knew I had to use the washroom and then help Mother with the breakfast.

"Shem." I said, as I nudged my husband. "Shem I need to get up."

"No." He grunted in response.

"Shem I need to pee." I said, chuckling a little.

"Pee here." Was his response.

"Shem!" I exclaimed.

Finally with what sounded like a mix between a grunt and a moan of pain, Shem released me from his embrace and instantly fell back to sleep. I kissed his forehead, and went to the washroom.

After I relieved myself and changed, I went to the hearth where I found Mother warming some bread.

"Did you sleep well?" She asked, a yawn following.

"As well as could be expected, and you?" I replied.

"I barely slept." She said.

"I had sent Shem to speak with Ham before I left with Japheth, and he did not return until I was asleep." I told her.

"It was your Father I was most worried about. Often times seeing that much death can change a man, especially for the worst." She told me, allowing herself to look momentarily frightened.

"Surely he must have assumed that he was going to witness something horrific, he could not have expected the Creator to make this an easy task Mother." I tried to assure her.

"Tell me Ila, when did you grow up?" She asked me.

"When I saw my parents die." I said without thinking.

Horrified, I went to apologize but Mother stopped me.

"It is better to speak the truth, than to twist it into something that you believe someone wants to hear." She told me.

As I got older, Naameh always seemed wiser than Noah. Maybe it was because she always told me what I wanted to hear, the blunt truth. Noah had always been careful about what he said to me, since he had never had a daughter, or even a sister, but Mother knew that I could hear it. When I became I teenager, I noticed I had not yet begun to bleed once a month, like Mother did. When I asked her about it, she took me into her tent and told me that when I had been cut open, it had damaged me inside, most specifically my woman hood; she told me that most savage men did that to young girls. When I asked her why, she told me that so even if they lived, it meant they could never bear children, which meant I could never carry a child. I was devastated beyond belief, and as I screamed and cried in her arms, she never told me it was going to be alright, because she knew it would not be.

After an hour, the men started trickling in. Ham was first, followed by Japheth, the Father, and finally Shem decided to show up. Mother glared at him as she served him his porridge but all he did was smile in return.

"You are lucky you are so handsome Shem." She told him.

"Well I have you to thank for that Mother." He said in return.

Shem kept talking throughout breakfast, whereas Father stared at the ground and Ham stared at Father. I tried to listen to Shem but all I could think of was Noah.

"Father," I said, "How long to you expect it will be before we find land?"

For the first time all morning Father looked up, and his face had the blankest expression I had ever seen on it.

"I do not know." He said firmly.

"How do you not know?" I asked.

Again, I got a blank stare.

"Because He has not told me." He replied.

"Well can you not ask?" I pressed.

Knowing I had gone too far, I recoiled into Shem's embrace. Father stood up and simply left.

"Ila." Shem said.

"What?" I spat.

"You should not have gone any further." He said stoically.

"Why not? We have a right to know how long we are going to be trapped in this ark." I replied.

"Even so…You shouldn't have pressed him." Shem said.

"That is enough from the both of you!" Mother scolded us. "Do not turn on each other."

Ashamed, both Shem and I turned away and ate the rest of our porridge in silence.


	2. Chapter 2

-Shem-

After a week, the ark was becoming a horrible pit of darkness. Father had told us what he had been told by the Creator, that we were to be the last humans alive, and even though all the other civilians had died, it was still raining. Ila and I had taken comfort in lying together, but we couldn't lie together all the time. Both Father and Ham had retreated away from the rest of the family and Japheth was beginning to get bored. I spent my days checking to ark for damages and if there were none I would try to occupy Japheth's attention while Mother and Ila stitched or baked bread, whichever one they knew would keep them busy.

"You know, when I was a girl, my father would take my sister and I on a small boat and teach us how to get fresh water." Mother told us, one night as we drank tea in the Hearth one afternoon.

"How did he teach you?" Japheth asked her.

"Well, he would have three bowels, one with tiny holes and two without. He would fill one with water and the he would pour in into the one with holes, which was placed over another closed bowl. When we would get home later that night he would boil the water that he had strained and as soon as it would cool, it would be drinkable." She explained.

"My mother would place cloth over a part of a river and scoop up the water after the cloth drifted downwards." Ila said. "Then she would boil it and let it cool. She used to tell me that the cloth would soak up anything that was bad from the water. Although I think she just did it to entertain my sister and me."

"How old was your sister?" Japheth asked Ila.

"She was the same age as Ham is now, fifteen. We were on our way to meet a potential husband for her." Ila told him.

"How old were you when you married Father, Mother?" Japheth asked Mother.

As I held Ila in my arms, I looked to Mother, she and Father rarely spoke of how they were married.

"Well I was Shem's age, nineteen. I had been engaged but the man I was supposed to be married to got very sick and was not able to move, so my father decided he would not make a good husband. A few days later, Father came to my village, more specifically to my father and asked for some herbs, saying he would trade tzohar. My father sent him to trade with me, since I knew herbs best and a few days later we were married." She told us.

"Did you have a dowry?" Ila asked. "My father always kept boxes with him that contained dowries for my sister and I."

Japheth looked at Ila curiously and asked, "What is a dowry?"

"It is something that a woman's family gives to the family of her future husband, a sort of payment." Ila explained to him.

"He gave me knowledge and more herbs than you can imagine." Father said from the hatchway.

"I suppose that was a fair trade." I said jokingly.

Ila elbowed me in the stomach and Japheth laughed, while both Mother and Father smiled at each other.

"What was your dowry Ila?" Japheth asked my wife.

"My sister had told me that my father had stashed away gold that he had been given by his father. It was the only thing of worth my family had." She told him.

"Father do we have gold?" Japheth asked Father.

"I have a few gold coins that my father gave to me, but it was only to be used if need be." Father explained.

"I can think of a few better things we can be doing." I whispered into Ila's ear.

She turned beet red and then turned to Mother.

"Shem and I are going to see if we can find where Ham ran off to." She said.

Ila grabbed my hand a pulled me down to the bowls of the ark. We had found this spot a few months ago, when I had been looking for a place to store extra wood in case I needed to fix up the ark after the deluge.

I pushed Ila up against the wall and kissed her neck. As I kissed up and down her neck, she ripped my shirt off and rubbed my chest. I tore of her dress and began to kiss her breast. She gripped onto my hair as I took one of her nipples into my mouth, sucking and grazing my teeth on her peaks, as one of my hands played with the other.

"Shem please, enough teasing." She panted.

I smirked and in one swift moment, I lifted her up and as she wrapped her legs around me I plunged into her. I kissed her to keep her from moaning to loud, afraid that someone might here us. Soon I felt myself close to climax, and as soon as I felt her walls tighten against me, I came. We both slid down the wall and lied down for a while.

"That was new." I said to her.

"Well we couldn't go back to our tent and I did not want to be close to any of the animals." She told me.

"Ila I am not complaining." I said with a chuckle.

"Now, let's go look for Ham." She replied.

S S S S S S S S

-Ila-

Tensions were certainly rising the longer we were stuck together on the ark. Ham had completely secluded himself, only coming out of the reptile deck to eat and sleep, Father spent most days alone in his workshop, Mother and I spent our time talking or knitting, and Shem took Japheth around to check the ark for holes or other damages.

I had begun to feel a little ill, but one night I awoke feeling faint and nauseous. I was soaked in sweat, and even though I was naked, I was scorching hot. Once Shem woke and saw me, he put on some trousers and called for Mother to bring water and I bucket, unfortunately she didn't come in time and I threw up on our blankets. Shem held my hair back, whispering soothing words into my ear, and when Mother came, he helped me drink.

"What is wrong Ila?" Mother asked, feeling my forehead. "You have a fever."

"I just woke and felt nauseous and I thought if I sat up it would feel better, but I only felt worse." I told her.

"Maybe you are sea sick." Shem suggested, covering me with a clean blanket.

"Most likely, make sure you drink lots of water and stay cool. Shem you should stay with her." Mother said.

Once she left, Shem put I cool rag on my forehead and on my neck and helped me get comfortable. As I lay with my head on his chest I tried to fall back to sleep but it was no use.

"If you aren't going to sleep then we should talk." Shem said.

"I feel that if I open my mouth all I will do is vomit." I told him wearily.

"You just spoke you know, and you did not vomit." He replied, a smile gracing his face.

"You are lucky that I don't want to move, otherwise I would slap you." I told him.

I could feel Shem chuckle but I was suddenly so tired that I couldn't do anything else but shut my eyes.

When I woke up again, I felt much better, so Shem and I decided to join the family for lunch. It was going well until Mother placed a bowl of vegetable soup in front of me. As soon as the smell hit my nostrils, I grabbed the bucket Shem brought for me and threw up the contents in my stomach, which was nothing. When I was done Mother handed me a glass of water, but I ended throwing that up a second later.

"This can't be sea sickness Naameh."

Was the last thing I heard Father say to Mother as Shem brought me back to our tent.


	3. Chapter 3

-Shem-

The next few weeks were terrible. All Ila did was vomit, she couldn't eat anything besides stale bread and a little bit a bread. It was terrible seeing the person I loved more than anything in the world so miserable. She spent all day lying down in the hearth with Mother, going back to our tent only when Mother needed to cook, and spent nights in our tent with me, crying.

Father had said that she most likely ate something bad, and combined with being on the rough sea only made it worse, but I knew Mother didn't believe it. One day she sent me to keep Japheth busy and took Ila into her tent. When I went in a few hours later, to put down some dry blankets, Ila threw her arms around me, tears in her eyes.

"What is it?" I asked, concerned by the look on Mother's face.

"I am with child." Ila said, placing one of my hands on her stomach.

I stared at her, gob smacked. Mother had always told us that due to Ila's injury she would never be able to bear a child. I looked to Mother and she nodded with a small smile on her face. I held Ila close and cried with joy into her hair.

"Come, we need to tell your Father." Mother said, braking up our embrace.

To say Father took the news well would be the biggest lie I could ever tell. He screamed and broke his workshop; he then proceeded up onto the open deck. Mother held Ila in her arms, trying to comfort her while I felt myself seething with anger. Why wasn't he happy, he is going to be a grandfather? I, his eldest son, am having a child. I was so angry I almost didn't notice the quietness. I looked to Mother and Ila, and then it sunk in, the rain had stopped.

It was the worst thing you could possibly imagine hearing; you're Father, the man who loved and raised you, telling you that he would kill your daughter. Ila collapsed on her knees sobbing, and while Mother wrapped her in an embrace, I marched away, fuming with anger. How dare he! There was no way I would let him take this away from Ila and I. Having a child was something we never thought possible, but now it was, and it was happening whether he liked it or not.

Having to see the look on Ila's face was heartbreaking. I ran back to her and took her into my arms, where she continued to sob uncontrollably.

"Sh Ila, he will not touch our child." I whispered to her.

"He will." She choked out.

And part of me knew she was right, but I did not want to think of that horrible possibility.

Once I got Ila into our tent and she was asleep, I went to go find Mother. Like always, she was sitting in front of the hearth, but when I got to her she had a the most unusual expression on her face.

"Shem," She said, turning towards me, "this is all my doing. I never meant for this to happen."

"Please Mother do not apologize because no matter what Father says, Ila gets to bear a child, my child, and that is the most precious gift anyone could have given either of us." I told her.

She grasped onto my hands and stared into my eyes.

"That man is not the man I married, the man I loved. He is tormented and twisted, and it is all from this task. It is driving him mad Shem." She said.

"I believe that he knows what he is doing, he is just ignoring the signs that it is wrong." I replied.

"She is strong Shem, stronger than you think. She should've died before we found her, but she did not. The fever should've killed her even after I fixed her, but she only grew to thrive. She will get through this and so will you." Mother told me.

"We need to escape." I said quietly.

"And go where Shem." She responded.

"The new world." I told her. "We just need to get off of this ark and away from Father."

"How would you escape? And more importantly if you did how would you expect Ila to give birth on a raft, with only you for help?" Mother asked me.

"I've seen you deliver animals Mother, and might I remind you that you had no help delivering any of us and nothing went wrong. As for how to escape, I savaged extra wood, I will make a vessel big enough for Ila and I to escape on." I explained.

S S S S S S S S

-Ila-

No matter how hard I tried I could not forget Father's threat. It was only days since the incident and I spent them in nothing but tears. He had told me that he would kill my child if it turned out to be a girl. What kind of a father would say something like that?

"Ila." I heard Shem whisper. "Are you awake?"

"Yes." I replied.

"I cannot fall asleep. Do you think escaping is safe? Maybe Mother was right, we shouldn't leave before you give birth." He said.

I turned onto my side and stared into my husband's eyes. They were a beautiful mixture of brown and green that were, at the moment, full of concern.

"We cannot stay Shem, you know that." I told him.

"I know." He said with a sigh.

"We can wait, until it is time, but then we must leave." I suggested.

"Ila, Mother will never let you leave while you are in labor." Shem said.

I sighed with frustration, knowing that Shem was right. In truth I was afraid of what might happen to us if we leave. The thought of giving birth scared me enough, but to have to do it and go through labor on a tiny raft was petrifying.

"Stop Ila." Shem said.

I looked at him confused and asked, "Stop what?"

"Overthinking." He replied.

"I am not overthinking Shem." I told him.

"I know you are scared love, I am too, but our child's life is in danger." He said, his hand caressing the slight curve that has formed on my usually thin belly.

"If Father did not threaten our child's life, would you want a boy or a girl?" I asked him.

"A girl." Shem said automatically.

"Why?" I asked.

"I don't know, I've never really thought about it, I have just always imagined us having a daughter." He replied

"But now if you have one she will be murdered, by her own grandfather." I said, tears cascading down my face.

She pulled me into an embrace and I could feel his body wracking with sobs.


	4. Chapter 4

-Ila-

I was the youngest child in my family and when Naameh and Noah had found me Japheth was an infant, so I had never seen a real pregnancy; and so far, it was horrible. As soon as the nausea stopped, my stomach started to grow larger, my appetite grew, and everything began to hurt, especially my breasts. Even though I was only about fifteen weeks, I had begun to really look pregnant.

Father had kept his distance from all of us, and because of this Ham had begun to include himself more. He had even offered to help Shem with his vessel. I could tell Mother was not happy with our plan, but she also knew that we did not have much of a choice. I knew she felt guilty since she was the one who saw Grandfather, but I did not blame her. All she did was give Shem and I a chance to have a child, a gift that I would always be forever grateful to her for.

"Mother I need new dresses." I told her at dinner that night.

"I just stitched you a new one last week Ila." She replied, ladling soup into bowls.

"I know but they are starting to get a bit snug." I said.

"Let me see if I still have some of my dresses from when I was carrying Japheth and if not I'll start making you a new one." She said.

"How long will it be in your stomach?" Japheth asked me.

"Forty weeks, give or take a few." Mother told him.

"That should give me plenty of time." Shem said to me.

"I only have about twenty five left Shem." I replied.

"That is over six months Ila." He said.

"Why so long?" Japheth asked.

"A baby needs time to grow." Mother told him.

"And we need all the time we can get." I added.

The next few weeks rolled by uneventfully. Shem spent the majority of his days building the raft and I helped Mother. I got larger with each passing day, and more uncomfortable.

"Give me your foot Ila." Shem said as we lay in our tent.

I gave him my foot and he began kneading it.

"How does that feel?" He asked.

"Heavenly." I replied. "It's been moving around today."

"Has it? I haven't been able to feel, it seems to stop every time o touch your stomach." He said.

"It doesn't stop, you just cannot feel it." I told him.

"What should we name it?" Shem asked me as he began rubbing my other foot a few moments later.

"I have not thought about it." I replied.

"I like Rachel for a girl." He said.

"It won't, no it can't be a girl Shem." I told him.

"It doesn't matter anymore Ila; we will be away from him." Shem said, taking my hands in his. "I know you are worried, I am too, but all this worrying is doing neither you nor the baby any good."

"What if we cannot get away?" I asked him.

He suddenly tore his hands from mine and looked away.

"Shem, what is it?" I asked.

"You do not want to know." I whispered.

"Tell me!" I all but yelled.

"If we cannot get away I will kill him." Shem said, refusing to meet my gaze.

I stared at Shem, frozen. He had always had a steely conviction, but killing Noah, that wasn't him.

"Shem." I said softly, taking his face in my hands. "Do not be ashamed for wanting to protect your family, but you know you will not be able to kill your father."

"I do not have a choice Ila. If I don't kill him he will kill our child." He said, tears running down his face.

Shem suddenly shoved his face into my chest and began sobbing. He had kept his fears all locked up trying to be my rock, and now it was my turn to soothe him. I rocked with him as he cried his face in my chest and his hands around my stomach. After a while his cries soften, and soon all I could hear was his rhythmic breathing telling me he had fallen asleep. I lied him down and covered him with a blanket.

"Is everything alright Ila?" Mother said from outside our tent.

"Everything is fine." I replied.

S S S S S S S S

-Shem-

"Are you nervous?" Ham asked me.

The two of us were currently working on the raft I planned to use to get away from Father and his mad beliefs.

"Am I nervous about what?" I asked in response.

"About being a father." He said.

I had been so busy that I honestly had not even thought about the fact that I was going to be a father.

"I suppose so, but I don't have to worry, Ila will know everything." I replied. "She always does."

"Ila might be able to know how to be a mother but I do not think she will know how to be a father Shem." Ham said.

As heartbroken and angry as Ham was, he seemed to be back to normal when it was just the two of us; although I knew he was jealous of me. I got to have a wife and a child, while he was stuck with no one.

"Ham, you know Father cannot be right." I told him.

"Part of me knows that, but then I hope he is right so that I know Na'el didn't die in vain." He said sadly.

"There you boys are, I have been looking for you everywhere." Ila said from out of nowhere.

As she came closer I realized that she was holding a tray with some water and bread and dried fruit.

"I figure you were both hungry, so I brought you something to eat." She told us.

"And you wanted to see the vessel." I said, taking some flatbread.

She smirked and kissed me on the cheek.

"It doesn't look like you have done much." She said.

"We wanted to make sure the bottom was strong so that it will not crack." Ham told her.

"I won't be that big." She said jokingly.

"You should have seen Mother when she was carrying Japheth." I told her.

"Shem, you should not speak of your Mother like that!" Ila exclaimed.

"All I remember was that Japheth was a huge baby." Ham added.

"He was also the first baby you had ever seen." I said to him.

"And what makes you an expert on babies all of a sudden Shem?" Ila asked me.

"I never said I was." I replied.

"Anyways I am going to go take a nap, enjoy your snack." Ila said, walking away.

"She seems better." Ham said.

"She is, we both are." I told him before we both went back to our tasks.

When I got back to the hearth I was exhausted. I gratefully took a jug of water from Mother and then climbed into my tent, where Ila was fast asleep. I looked at her sleeping form as I pushed back a strand of hair from her forehead. She is breathtaking, I told myself. Everything about Ila was perfect, and not just how she looked but her personality. She was kind, caring, and gentle, but she was also able to keep up with Ham and I when it came to woodworking and building. Although she wasn't strong enough to help build the ark, she made the tar and helped tell Father and me where the wood should have been placed. She was strong-willed and stubborn at times and even though we had our fair share of fights, I wouldn't trade her for anything.

"Why are you staring at me?" Ila mumbled.

"Because you are beautiful." I told her.

"Mhmm." She mumbled.

"I love you." I told her.

"I love you too." She replied.

S S S S S S S S

-Ila-

"Stop Shem!"

I exclaimed as my husband began tickling my ribs. I had been asleep but Shem decided to give me an extremely rude wake up call.

"You can't do this I am with child!" I shrieked.

"I don't think tickling will injure a baby." He said with a laugh.

"I cannot breath!" I exclaimed.

Shem finally stopped and after giving me a minute to breath he slammed his lips on mine. I kissed him back just as hard.

"Shem as much as I want to continue this I am really tired and sore." I told him.

"Where are you sore?" He asked me.

"Mostly my back and my breasts." I replied.

"I can help with both of those things. Lie on your side." He told me.

I moved onto my side and let Shem knead my back.

"Where does it hurt the most?" He asked me.

"All of it." I told him with a light chuckle


	5. Chapter 5

-Shem-

I still couldn't believe that there was a baby growing inside of Ila. The fact that I was going to be a father filled me with joy, and I loved just feeling the baby in her stomach. The baby hadn't begun to kick yet, but Ila said she could feel it fluttering.

"What are you thinking about?" Ila asked me.

"This." I said, rubbing her belly.

"What about it?" She pressed.

"How it is growing." I told her.

"You do realize that as it grows, I grow Shem." Ila said.

"Which I love." I added seductively.

I kissed her neck but she pushed me off.

"I don't want to Shem!" Ila all but yelled.

"Sh Ila you don't have to get so upset." I assured her.

All of a sudden she broke down to tears. I tried to comfort her but all she did was push me away. Mother came in to our tent to see what was wrong and as soon as Ila say her she threw her arms around Mother's neck and sobbed into her shoulder. Mother motioned for me to leave so I did.

Not knowing what to do I decided to go work on the raft. The main deck was done so now Ham and I were working on the shelter. I want to make it big enough for both Ila and I to live in comfortably and I also want to make sure Ila has enough room to give birth. Mother said she needed to be comfortable and have light.

"Son." Mother said, breaking me from my thoughts.

"How is she?" I asked as a slapped tar on the wood.

"She is fine, exhausted and cranky, but fine." Mother said with a sigh.

"Thank you Mother." I told her.

"It will be harder soon, once she gets further along." Mother said.

"Great." I said with a snort.

"Shem, do you really think you can escape on this raft?" Mother asked me.

"Yes Mother I do." I told her.

"Please Shem, listen to me. It is not safe, not for you and especially not for Ila and the baby. If you leave you will die on the seas!" Mother exclaimed.

"We will not die." I told her. "But if we stay here my baby will Mother."

She got up from the floor in a huff and walked back to the hearth. I shook my head and continued working on the raft. As much as I enjoyed Ham's company, it was nice to work alone and let my mind wander. Ham, like Mother, would try to talk me out of leaving. _For yours and Ila's sake_, he always says.

I was exhausted by the time I went back to the hearth. Mother and Ila were sitting by the furnace while Ham was playing a stick game with Japheth.

"I was beginning to think you were eaten by a fish." Ila said, not even looking up from her stitching.

"And you seem like you care." I said, kissing her forehead.

"Here have some figs and pomegranates." Mother said, handing me a bowl.

"Thank you." I said taking the bowl from her.

When I worked, letting the thoughts run ramped through my head, I always forget to stop to eat. It did not matter much since I did not have much of an appetite these days. I wanted to make sure Ila and I could take as much food as we could and I knew Ila needed to eat more than I do. The baby was growing bigger and bigger and Mother was sure it was a boy, while I just think she said that so we could stay. She got angry with me when the conversation came up and I had to remind her that Ila was the one that was dead set on leaving even more than I was, but of course Mother could not yell at Ila so she would just look down and mumble her feelings.

"Will we be able to cook on the raft?" Ila asked.

"No, there will not be any room for a furnace." I told her.

"No matter, we can do without soup for a while." She said, more to Mother than me.

"If there is not even room for a furnace how will there be room for Ila to give birth. Labor is hard enough without having to go through it crammed on a tiny raft." Mother said angrily.

I looked to Ila and saw a terrified expression on her face. I knew she was scared, even if she did not want to admit it. I also notice Ham and Japheth leave out of the corner of my eye, not wanting to hear the argument that was going to erupt. Mother opened her mouth to say something, but before she could Ila let out a yelp. I rushed to her side and began to ask her a hundred questions.

"Where does it hurt?"

"Was that the baby?"

"Is it coming?"

"No Shem, I am fine, it just kicked me inside." Ila said, cupping my face.

I kissed her, hard, and weaved my hand through her hair.

"That is enough." Mother said. "Ila drink more water."

We broke apart and Ila took the cup from Mother.

S S S S S S S S

Ila

I love Shem, I truly do, but there are times where I just want to rip his head off. He is protective and loving but so overbearing. If I got up he made me sit down, even if all I wanted to do was pee. Mother was the same way, except I listened to her more since she was with child three times, and Shem obviously was not.

Mother and Shem had been fighting constantly. She thinks us leaving is a terrible idea, and maybe it is but it is the only chance for our child to survive. Shem of course does not care what she says and simply just ignores her. Stubborn just like his father, she would mumble under her breath. I tried not to interfere with their quarrels but I always got pulled in and like an obedient wife I stuck with Shem, but other times I stuck with Mother like an obedient daughter. I never really "chose" a side; I just do it to mess with them. It is so dreadfully boring being stuck on this ark and watching them banter is the only fun I get to have.

I was sitting in mine and Shem's tent stitching a blanket when I felt it. It was a light nudge that was coming from my belly. I put my hand on my belly and felt it again.

"SHEM!" I screamed.

He ran in and rushed to my side.

"What? What is it!?" He panted.

I took his hand and placed it on my belly. He stared at me for a second but then the baby kicked again.

"Did it just…?" He asked.

"Yes, it did." I cried.

He kissed my lips and then moved them down to my belly.

"Hello in there, I am your father. Your mother and I love you very much. We have wanted you for the longest time. I want you to know that no matter what happens to me I will do everything in my power to make sure you are safe." He said to my stomach, tears rolling down his face.

I am crying to, well of course I'm crying that is all I do nowadays.

"What do you think it is like?" Shem asked after a few minutes.

"What what is like?" I replied.

"Having a child." He said.

"Tiring, hard." I replied.

"I cannot wait." He said, nuzzling into my belly again.

"Shem I would appreciate it if you did not put your head in my crotch." I said as politely as I could muster.

"I am talking to the baby." He told me.

I rolled my eyes and went back to my stitching. We already had at least twenty baby blankets, but I wanted to make sure the baby stayed warm on the seas. Shem said I was going mad but I like to think it is just maternal instinct.


	6. Author's Note

Hi thanks for those who have been reviewing! I swear I will update I just have a bit of writers block. If anyone has any suggestions I am up for anything!

Thanks!

Gabby


	7. Chapter 6

Yay chapter 6 is finally here. Sorry it sucks but I had serious writers block! I also want to say that I would like to update once a week and have at leat one review before I do!

-Shem-

The baby kicked, and I felt it. When Ila called for me I was so worried. Once she put my hand on her stomach I felt nothing but joy! That night as we ate, it kicked again and I proudly had everyone feel. Mother cried and Japheth asking hundreds of questions, Ham on the other hand showed no emotion and did not want to feel. Ila looked a little hurt but I knew she understood that he was not trying to hurt her.

Ham had retreated to the reptile deck more now and was rarely seen at meal times. I tried to talk to him but all he ever did was ask about Ila and Mother. He wanted to know how they were and how the baby was. I felt genuinely bad for my brother, but not as bad as Mother. She thought his misery was her fault that she should be with him, comforting him. I would tell her that he does not want that but she never listens.

"Can't you just speak to her?" I asked Ham as he helped me with the boat.

"She never listens to me." Ham replied.

"All Mother wants is for you to acknowledge that she still exists and is your mother." I told him.

I stared into my brother's eyes and all I say was emptiness. He had retreated so far into his anger that I could not see the old him anymore.

"If it is what she wants, I will tell her I am fine." Ham said, defeated.

"But you are not fine Ham. You are far from fine." I pleaded with my brother.

"I am Shem and I am the last thing you need to worry about. You have Ila and a baby that need you, I will be fine." Ham told me.

"I do worry about them, all I do is worry. I can tell Ila is getting tired of my fretting but I cannot help it." I confessed.

"She knows she can take care of herself." Ham whispered.

S S S S S S S S

-Ila-

"Pinch the fabric here and then stich." I told Japheth.

I was trying to teach Japheth how to stich a dress. It close to Mother's birthday and Japheth wanted to make her something special. Mother has been so upset lately and Japheth being the sweet boy he is decided he wanted to show her that he loves her.

"Like this?" He asked.

I picked up the garment and accessed it. His stitching was neat and the pattern was all align. It was perfect.

"Japheth, this is perfect. Mother will love it." I told him.

He grinned widely and ran off to hide the dress. I laughed to myself.

"Watch yourself Japheth." I yelled out to him.

"What is that boy up to now?" Mother asked me, walking into the Hearth.

"Mother please announce yourself." I said putting my hand on my chest.

Out of nowhere I felt a strange pain in my stomach. I grabbed Mother's arm and called out in pain.

"Something's not right." I cried.

"What is it?" Mother asked me calmly.

"I don't know it hurts." I cried.

"Sit Ila." She said helping me to the floor. "Where does it hurt?"

"My stomach." I replied in between sobs.

Somehow Shem must've heard me because he came running in a second later.

"What's wrong?" He asked, his face full of worry.

"Ila's feeling some stomach pains." Mother told him.

I was hysterical at that point. The cramps were worse now and they weren't stopping. Shem was holding my hand tightly, telling me that everything was going to be fine.

"I need to get her to your tent so I can check her." Mother told Shem.

"Fix it now!" I yelled at her.

Out of options, Mother grabbed a blanket and covered me with it. I squeezed Shem's hand with all of my might as I felt Mother's hand feel me.

"You are not dilated and I cannot feel the baby's head." Mother said.

"Then why is she in so much pain?" Shem asked.

"I believe it is just false labor." Mother told us. "It is no problem."

"No problem!" I yelled at her. "I feel like I am dying, how is that no problem?"

"Ila calm down, she did not mean it like that my love." Shem whispered into my ear.

Before I could reply I felt another stab of pain.

"Ow Shem, make it stop." I cried.

Shem wrapped me in his arms and rocked me. He whispered soothing words into my ears as I cried through the pain. As the pain began to ebb down, I finally began to calm down.

"Here Ila, try to eat some broth." Mother said, handing me a bowl.

Shem took it from her and helped me drink from it. Once I finished the broth Shem helped me up and into our tent.

"How are you feeling?" Shem asked me, smoothing my hair.

"The pain is gone, but I am exhausted." I said exhaustingly.

"Then rest your eyes love." He replied.

And that is exactly what I did.

S S S S S S S S

_Flashback_

_-Shem-_

_I couldn't remember how long I had been working on the ark, chopping down a tree so that I could strip the bark and use the wood to add to the ark. It had been 5 years since Father began building the ark and in the past year I had finally become old and strong enough to really help. At fifteen I was tall and very strong, strong enough to be a man Father told me._

_ "__Can I help?" I heard from behind me._

_I turned around and saw Ila looking at me shyly._

_ "__Company would be nice for now, but once I get the tree down I will need another set of hands." I told her._

_In the 5 years since we found her, I had grown more in love with Ila with each passing day. She was beautiful, especially her eyes, they were big and soft; I always felt comfort when I stared into them. It had taken about a year for Ila to fully recover from the attack. Now she was fine and healthy, able to run and help about the ark. She couldn't walk for a while and she would flinch when someone who wasn't Mother got too close to her, even me! When I asked Mother why she said it was fright from her attack, but I heard Mother and Father talking one night and she told him that one of the raiders had defiled Ila before she was cut. The thought made be red with rage, but I never got to upset since I did not want to scare Ila._

_ "__You are quiet when you work." I mused._

_ "__Sorry, just thinking." I told her. "Move back."_

_I moved back with her as we both watched the tree fall. Once it was down, I handed her a large knife._

_ "__Here," I said handing it to her, "Peel back the top bark layer while I cut the branches off."_

_ "__You are awfully demanding today aren't you?" Ila said jokingly._

_ "__I'm nothing compared to how Father is." I told her. "All he does is bark out orders without looking at me. I do not know how he does it."_

_ "__He is Noah." Ila said blankly._

_I let out a snort and continued on with my work, talking to Ila about this and that. Minutes passed, then hours and before long it was getting dark outside._

_ "__We should go back." I said to Ila._

_ "__What about the wood?" She asked me, whipping sweat from her brow._

_ "__I can send some Watchers to get it." I replied._

_I looked at Ila again and saw she had some dust from the bark on her cheek. I took a few steps closer to her and gently rubbed it off with my thumb. She looked up at me with her big brown eyes, and without thinking I leaned down and touched her lips with me. She was shocked at first, but after a moment she began to kiss me back. I dropped my axe and captured her face with my hands as her arms snaked around my neck. We kissed for as long as we could before we both needed air. _

_ "__That was…" She mumbled._

_ "__Incredible." I finished, capturing her lips again._


	8. Chapter 7

-Ila-

I was still shaken by the false labor incident. It has been almost 3 weeks but I still thought about it constantly. I am 24 weeks now, which means over halfway until the baby is born. It had been kicking constantly, letting Shem and I know that it is okay. After having fake contractions, I was more nervous for labor. I had not felt pain that great since I was attacked by the raiders ten years ago.

"Pass the flat bread please Ila." I heard Japheth say.

I was whisked out of my thoughts and passed the bread to my brother. We were all sitting down to dinner to celebrate Shem's twentieth birthday.

"I cannot believe my eldest son is twenty; and going to have a baby!" Mother exclaimed.

"Please Mother, do not get emotional." Shem said.

"I am sorry. I should not love you." Mother replied.

Shem rolled his eyes and kissed Mother on the forehead.

"It's kicking again Shem." I said, putting his hand on my belly.

"Thank you baby." He said, kissing my belly.

"I have something for you Shem." Japheth said to his older brother.

"What is it?" Shem asked.

Japheth handed Shem a bundle of cloth. Shem took it gratefully and unwrapped it to reveal a dried flower.

"I picked it before we left, it is to remind you of us when you leave." Japheth explained.

"That is so wonderful!" I cried.

Shem pulled me into an embrace as I sobbed. He called Japheth over and whispered something into his ear. Japheth swelled with pride and ran back to Mother's side.

"What did you say to him?" I asked Shem in a whisper.

"That is between Japheth and me." Shem replied, kissing me.

"I think I am going to go back to the tent now." I said.

I got up and once I said good night to everyone, I went back to my tent. I undressed and took a minute to evaluate myself. My breasts were enormous and had red blotches all over them. My once flat stomach now looked as if I swallowed a watermelon whole. It came out almost as far as I could extend my arms and was covered in stretch marks; Mother told me that she had them as well.

With a sigh I laid down on my bedroll and covered myself with a blanket. A few moments later I heard the floorboards creaking and then felt a pair of familiar hand touch my stomach.

"I assume this is why you retired early." Shem whispered into my ear.

His voice sent a shiver down my back as I nodded. Soon I felt his lips on my neck as one of his hand began to knead one of my breasts gently, while the other one held him up.

"Mhm Shem." I moaned. "But tonight is your night."

Reluctantly I turned around and pushed Shem back. I kissed his lips hungrily and as I did I began to tear at his clothes. Once his pants were off I dropped my hand lower until I found what I was looking. Shem let out a shuddering breath as I gripped his manhood. I kissed him harder as he moaned at my ministrations.

"Please Ila, enough teasing." Shem muttered lowly.

I pretended not to hear him as I continued to pump him agonizingly slowly. I suppose he had enough because in one swift second I was on my back and Shem was on top of my, trailing kisses down my front.

"Shem, my back." I practically spat out.

Without moving his lips from mine, he grabbed a few folded up blankets and placed one under my back and the other under my hips.

"Better?" he asked.

I nodded as his kisses began to travel lower. Finally his lips found their mark and I let out a gasp as I felt his tongue on my womanhood. I felt him smirk as he licked me. It took only a few moments before I unraveled. Before I could even recover I felt Shem enter me.

"Shem!" I cried out.

He brought his lips down to mine, as best he could due to my enormous belly. As he thrust into me his hands traveled over my body as mine remained tangled in his hair and around his neck. I let out a hiss as he tweaked one of my nipples; they were sore but it felt painfully delicious when he touched them. I couldn't tell how long we were together, time seemed to stop, but after I while I felt myself tighten and Shem and I released together.

Panting, he rolled off of me and pulled me close to him. Our tent smelled of sweat and sex but it did not seem to bother me.

"Happy Birthday." I told him.

S S S S S S S S

-Shem-

Once I was sure Ila was asleep, I put my pants on and went to the hearth to get some water. Ila had been so uncomfortable lately that we had rarely been intimate in the past few months, but tonight was different. I smiled as I sipped my water.

"Do not look so giddy Shem," Mother said, sitting next to me, "and next time please try and be a bit quieter. You were lucky Japheth was asleep."

"I am sorry Mother." I told her, my face red.

"In the next few weeks all Ila will want is for the two of you to lie together, it is natural." She replied.

"Will it hurt the baby?" I asked her.

I knew it was an absurd question, but it had been haunting me since I found out Ila was with child.

Mother let out a light chuckle before answering me, "No Shem, it will not."

I let out a sigh I did not know I was holding and went back to staring at my cup of water.

"She is frightened, ever since the false labor. I can see it in her eyes." I let out. "I do not know what to say. I believe the pain brings back memories for her."

"It will hurt, but it will all be worth it, she will see." Mother replied.

"I say that, but she does not listen to me." I said.

"You both are, you get it from your father." She said.

"Do not speak of him." I spat out.

"You cannot possibly live the rest of your life not speaking to or about him Shem, like it or not he is your father, just as you are that baby's father." Mother told me fiercely.

Suddenly I felt as though I couldn't breathe. I felt a pain in my chest and I stumbled out onto the deck of the ark to try to get air. Mother followed me and wrapped me into an embrace.

"It is alright Shem, take deep breaths." She told me.

I tried, but all I could manage were gasps. Mother was rubbing my back, whispering calming stories into my ear and it all became too much. Defeated, I let sobs wrack my body. Mother held me tightly, just as I had been doing for Ila these past six months.

"Are you feeling better?" Mother asked as my sobs began to ebb.

"Yes." I mumbled out.

Mother left and then returned a moment later with my water. I gulped it down thirstily.

"What if I cannot do it?" I asked her. "What if I cannot be a father?"

"We are put here for the purpose of creating children and raising them to have children of their own. You may doubt yourself now but that will all change when you hold that child in your arms." Mother told me, her eyes staring into mine.

I hugged her and she hugged me back tightly. We embraced until I heard a small voice from the hatchway.

"Shem."

I looked up and saw Ila, a blanket wrapped around her to conceal her nakedness. She was coming towards me but I jumped to my feet once I saw her shiver.

"Come, lets go back to sleep." I told her.

Ila nodded and let me bring her back to our tent. Once I got her into a night dress and made sure she was warm I stuck my head out but Mother was nowhere to be found. Shrugging, I laid down next to Ila and drifted off to much needed sleep.

The next morning I woke to the smell of something sweet. I turned over to find Ila already out of the tent. I got up with a groan and after I splashed some water on my face, I walked into the hearth. There I found Ila and Mother laughing while they cooked and Ham and Japheth playing a game with rocks.

"Well look who decided to join us." Ila said, her voice joyful.

I went over to kiss her and I saw a spark in her eye that I hadn't seen in almost a year.

"What is that delicious smell?" I asked, nuzzling my face into her neck.

"I am making sweet bread with jam for breakfast." Mother said, swatting me with a spoon. "Go play with your brothers."

I rolled my eyes and kissed Ila one more time before I sat down with my brothers. They were trying to see who could make the rock bounce higher. Japheth seemed to be winning, only because Ham was letting him.

"The blunter the rock is the higher it will go." I told them.

Japheth looked at me like I had said the most incredible thing, but Ham's stare was distant.

"How do you know?" Japheth asked me.

"Grandfather told me when Father took me to see him all those years ago. I forgot about it until now." I told him.

"Ila sit down!" I heard Mother yell at my wife.

"Mother I can help, I am not incapable." Ila yelled back.

"They have been yelling at each other all morning. You should have seen Ila's face when Mother told her that she did not want her help." Ham said with a laugh. "It was terrifying."

"Shem tell your mother that I can help pass food out." Ila yelled to me.

"Please do not drag me into this." I told her.

"Do it or you are sleeping with one of your brothers until we leave." She threatened, her eyes black.

I shrank back a little in fear before turning to Mother.

"She is right Mother," I told her. "Ila can help, but not too much."

Ila smiled triumphantly before grabbing three plates from Mother and handing them out to the three of us. Mother came over with the other two and handed Ila hers.

"Thank you." Ila whispered into my ear.

"Do not do that, it will give me the wrong ideas." I whispered back, nuzzling my head into her hair.

**AN: Sorry for the wait, I had some writers block. If anyone has any suggestions feel free to leave a comment or PM me!**


	9. Chapter 8

**AN: I AM SOOOOOOO SORRY IT TOOK ME SO LONG TO UPLOAD, I AM TRYING TO EXTEND THE STORY TO AROUND FIFTEEN CHAPTERS SO I AM TRYING TO KEEP ILA PREGNANT UNTIL AT LEAST CHAPTER 13 OR 14. I AM ALSO THINKING ABOUT ADDING AN EPILOGUE TO SHEM AND ILA AFTER THE ARK SO LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK. AND REMEMBER TO COMMENT!**

-Shem-

Somehow in the six months since the rain stopped, I had only seen Father once. We all knew that he kept himself secluded in his workshop so we all stayed away from there, but one night I saw him taking some bread from the Hearth. I do not know if he saw me, even if he did not acknowledge my presence. He did not look different, as I assumed he would. He looked like my father, Noah.

I did not tell Ila about my encounter with Father, but I told Mother. When I saw him he did not look sickly or hungry, which led me to believe that someone was giving him food. I knew it wasn't Ila or Ham, and poor Japheth was too scared to go anywhere near him, so that left Mother. When I asked her about it she looked down, a guilty expression on her face.

"Why?" I asked her.

"I cannot explain it Shem, he is my husband, I cannot let him starve." She yelled back.

"Yes you can! He is a terrible person Mother, he let all those people die and now he is trying to kill my child." I all but screamed at her. "Just let him starve!"

"You do not understand Shem. What if Ila did something unthinkable, would you still love her?" Mother asked me.

"That is the difference; Ila would never do anything like Father." I replied.

I was so angry; I just stormed away from Mother and went to work on the vessel. It was nearly done; all I needed to do was add the roof. I was so consumed in my work I almost missed someone calling my name faintly. I turned around and saw Ila standing in the archway. She had a concerned look on her face and held out her arms to me.

"Please go rest love." I told her. "I want to finish this as quickly as I can."

"Shem, talk to me." She said.

"She is feeding him." I said.

"I know." Ila replied quietly.

I turned around and saw she was sitting down, staring out into the sea.

"How do you know?" I asked, sitting down next to her.

"I saw her a few weeks ago. She did not see me and as mad as I was, I could not find it in me to stop her. That man is not Noah, he is not himself. He is a man whose mind has been corrupted, who had to deal with the guilt of so many deaths that he caused." She said. "He doesn't need to be killed Shem, he needs to be helped. He needs to be shown that he is possibly misinterpreting the task he was given. He needs to be shown that deep down he is still the same Noah that he was ten years ago."

"I love you Ila, but I believe you give Father more credit than he deserves." I told her. "I am going to tell you something and you must promise not to tell Ham what I have told you."

She nodded, and taking her hands in mine I told her what Ham told me our first night on the ark. I told her about the girl, Na'el, that Father let her die. Ila looked at me, tear running down her face and eyes full of terror.

"Shem, that is not Father." She said quietly.

"That is what I told Ham, but after what Father told us, I am beginning to think that he truly is a monster." I told her.

I held her close to me as she cried for Ham. This was the reason he is so haunted, because of Father and now Ila knew this.

"Ila you cannot tell Mother." I told her. "She cannot know."

She nodded and leaned her head on my shoulder. I kissed her head and leaned my back against the wall. It wasn't until I felt someone nudging my leg did I realize we had fallen asleep. I opened my eyes to find Ham standing over.

"What?" I asked sleepily.

"Mother told me to wake you up; she said Ila should not be in the sun too much." He replied.

I groaned and got up carefully, trying to not wake Ila. Once I was up, I stretched a bit and carried Ila into our tent. I tucked her in and went back out to see Ham surveying the vessel.

"It looks good." He said.

"I am still not done. Once the roof is dry I am going to cut a hole in one of the walls to use as a window." I told him.

"Can I go with you?" Ham mumbled quietly.

"What? Ham, you do not want to come with us. You need to stay here for Mother and Japheth." I replied.

"You are right." He said, defeated.

"Is everything alright Ham?" I asked him seriously.

He nodded his head yes, but I could tell in his eyes he wasn't.

S

-Ila-

"Shem," I moaned, "stop teasing."

"What?" Shem mumbled sleepily.

I shot up, realizing it had all been a dream. Shem and I were sleeping in our tent, not lying together in the forest.

"Nothing, go back to sleep." I whispered to him.

I got up, with a bit of trouble, and waddled into the Hearth to get some water. This pregnancy was making me mad! Yesterday I spent the entire day crying because Shem dropped one of his tools into the sea and now all I could think about was Shem pounding into me as hard as he could.

"Ila?" I heard Mother say, breaking me from my thoughts. "Is everything alright?"

She seemed concerned. Of course she's concerned, I am sitting in the middle of the Hearth, panting, my face flushed.

"Bad dream." I replied quietly.

"Oh my love." She remarked, engulfing me in a hug.

I leaned into Mother's embrace and let out a long sigh. She smelled like warm bread and mint leaves. As she held me tightly I let my worries just flutter away and only thought happy thoughts.

"You should rest as much as possible; soon you will not be sleeping at all." She said some time later.

"All I do is rest, I am so dreadfully bored." I told her.

"Trust me, Daughter you need it now." She said sternly.

Feeling tired, I rested my eyes and woke suddenly a few hours later to the sun blasting into my eyes.

"Good morning sunshine." I heard Shem say.

I mumbled an unintelligent reply and turned over. I felt my face hit something soft and opened my eyes enough to realize that my head was in Shem's lap. I snuggled my head into his lower stomach to shield my eyes from the light.

"Would you like something to eat?" He asked, stroking my hair.

"No." I mumbled. "Sleep."

He let out a chuckled and heard a few other snickers. Shem continued to stroke my hair, but after a little while I realized that going back to sleep was not going to happen.

"Water and berries." I told Shem.

"You have to get off of me first love." He replied.

"I will get them." I heard Mother say.

"Thank you Mother." Shem said.

Later that day I sat on the deck of the ark stitching while I watched Shem work on the raft. It looked stronger now since it was almost complete. There was a little hut that was long enough for two people and a baby. On the outside of the hut was a small deck for some fresh air and to fish. Mother still did not want us to go, but we have no choice.

"You think it'll be this small?" Shem asked, pointing at the baby outfit I was stitching.

"Mother gave me the template she used to make all of your and your brothers dressings over the years." I replied.

He came over and plucked it from my hands. I frowned at him but he was too busy examining the outfit to notice my face.

"We are going to be taking care of something this small." He said. "It is surreal is it not?"

"Very." I replied.

"Micah for a boy and Rebekah for a girl." He stated.

"Rebekah? I do not like it." I told him firmly.

"Then what do you like my love?" Shem asked me.

"Dinah." I replied.

"I like Dinah, but we will have a Rebekah." He said.

"How many children do you want from me?" I asked him curiously.

We had never really spoke about children before, since we had believed we would never have any.

"As many as we can." He said. "Preferably seven; four girls and three boys."

I gaped at him.

"You expect me to give birth seven times!" I exclaimed.

"It is just a suggestion." He replied with a shrug.

"You have really thought about this haven't you?" I asked him gently.

"When I cannot sleep at night, I rest my head next to this and think about our children." Shem confessed, his hands caressing my swollen belly.

A second later the baby kicked so hard that I let out a yelp and Shem jumped back a bit.

"I guess someone does not want any siblings to share with." Shem said, kissing where the kick came from.

"Stubborn like his father." I mumbled, stroking Shem's hair.

"You mean like his mother." Shem shot back.

"I meant what I said." I told him.

Shem covered my lips with his and I could feel him smirking.

"I know you did." He whispered as our lips parted.


	10. Chapter 9

_Flashback_

_-Ila-_

_The pain I felt in my belly was excruciating. I tried to open my eyes but they felt so heavy and my head felt so hot._

_ "__You are alright now Ila." I heard a woman say gently. "You are safe now."_

_I let out a moan as she unwound my bandages to check on my injury. I kept replaying what happened over and over again in my head. My mother and aunts were cooking, my father and uncles were laughing and my cousins and I were playing when we all heard the shouts. The men went to arm themselves while the women tried to usher us kids into a tent but it was useless, the raiders were already here. They came at us in groups and the last thing I remembered was one of them touching me before he ran is knife across my belly. When I finally came to I could hear voices, a man, a woman, and a young boy. I let out a moan of pain to let them know I was there and within seconds I felt a small hand take mine. I opened my eyes and saw a boy, maybe nine or ten years old, staring at me. He had brown hair and beautiful brown-green eyes. Once his mother came over she began to examine my wound. I could not see it but by the look on her face I could tell it was not good. The boy, Shem his mother said, squeezed my hand comfortingly. _

_I suppose I had passed out because the next thing I knew I was being thrust into Shem's arms and he began to run. Shem's mother screamed and next thing we all knew we were being thrown into a pit by giant rock monsters. Shem put me down and his mother checked my bandages and gave me some water._

_ "__Who are you?" I asked her hoarsely._

_ "__My name is Naameh." She told me._

_ "__Why help?" I whispered._

_ "__Not all people are bad. My husband and I are not the type to leave a child for dead." She replied. "Close your eyes and try to sleep. Everything will be alright."_

_When I woke again, hours after Noah sang me to sleep; we were no longer in pit. My head felt lighter and cooler and although my stomach still ached, the pain was not as bad as it was before. I saw a cup of water next the bedroll I was lying on and drank it greedily. Outside the tent I could hear noises so I stood up and with all the strength I could muster, I limped over to the tent opening. There I saw Noah and Shem. Noah was saying something to the Watcher, Og. Shem and his father were bundled up and had a pack with them, they must be going to the mountain, I thought to myself. Right before they walked away Shem turned his head and looked at me. He smiled kindly and gave me a wave before he turned around and ran to catch up to his father._

S S S S S S S S

-Ila-

I was exhausted! My back hurt, my ankles were twice their normal size, and I had been having false labor more frequently. The raft was complete but Shem did not want us to leave until the last possible second. Now that he was done helping Shem, Ham had completely retreated back to the reptile deck and we rarely ever saw him. It hurt everyone, especially Mother, but we all knew that pushing Ham would only make matters worse.

To be completely honest, I was terrified to leave. I love Shem and I trust him with my life, but having only him to help me give birth was scary. I wanted Mother to be there, to hold me and tell it will be alright, the way she does when I have the false labor, but I knew that we cannot stay. I mentioned the possibility of Mother coming with us to Shem, but we both know she would never leave Ham and Japheth and our raft would not be able to accommodate all of us.

"Put your hand right here." I told Japheth.

"What is that?" He asked me.

"That is a foot." I told him.

I was sitting in the Hearth with Japheth, keeping him company while Mother and Shem were talking. I did not know what it was about and I did not feel it was right to ask.

"Is there anything to eat?" I heard.

I turned around and saw Ham. He looked thinner and gaunter. He looked terrible to be honest.

"Let me get you some soup." I told him.

I went over to the furnace and ladled some soup into a bowl. After I handed it to Ham, who ate it hungrily, I began to wipe his face with a damp cloth.

"I know you are upset Ham but there is no excuse for not taking care of yourself." I scolded him.

"Sorry." He mumbled as he gnawed on a piece of bread.

I shook my head as I continued to clean him off. Once I was content with how he looked, I poured him some water and refilled his soup bowl. Ham thanked me and snatched the items from my hand.

"Ham when was the last time you ate?" I asked him.

"A few days. It is fine Ila, I was not hungry." He replied.

"And here I thought brooding all day worked up a healthy appetite." I said sarcastically.

Ham let out a snort while Japheth just looked at us curiously. I gave him some herbs to crush while I went over to Ham.

"Tell me what bothers you." I said to him quietly.

"I am fine, truly." He replied. "How are you?"

"Worried, but I have never been happier." I told him.

"That is not what I meant." He said.

I let out a deep sigh, "Truthfully, I feel awful. I always thought that carrying a child would be a blessing, which it is, but it is nothing but pain and sorrow."

"Is that my brother I see?" I heard Shem say as he took a seat next to me. "How long has it been?"

"That is enough." I told him, swatting at his chest. "Maybe the reason he does not want to be here is your terrible humor."

"Or maybe it is your constant whining about how terrible your husband is." He shot back, kissing me.

"I am going to go for a walk. Japheth, why don't you come with me?" Ham said.

Japheth got up eagerly and the two left Shem, Mother, and I alone in the Hearth.

"Did Ham tell you what is bothering him?" Mother asked me quietly after a few moments of silence.

"No." I told her. "I did not ask either. I did not want to upset him."

"Maybe he just wants to be alone." Shem said bitterly.

I gave him a strange look and when I looked into his eyes, I could tell there was something he was not telling me. I did not want to ask in front of Mother so I just let it go and went back to crushing herbs.

S S S S S S S S

_Flashback_

_-Shem-_

_We were crossing what Father said was a tzohar mine when we saw them. There was a caravan and it was surrounded by bodies; dead bodies. The smell was retched and some of them seemed as young as I was._

_Mother and Father were talking when we all heard a moan of pain from amongst the bodies. Father and I went to look in different direction, and on the other side of the caravan, propped up against rubble, was a young girl. I ran over to her and called for Mother and Father. Taking the girls hand in mine, I looked her in the eyes and told her she was going to be alright. The girl looked a year or two younger than me, probably seven or eight, and she had long blonde hair and dark eyes._

_Mother ran over to us and began to examine the girl as I held her hand. Mother removed the cloth the girl had been covering her belly with and we could see that she had been cut from her left hip to her bellybutton. As Mother cleaned the wound and began to stitch it back together, I tried to keep the girl, Ila she said her name was, calm. Mother had said that she had lost an extreme amount of blood and by the look on her face it did not look like Ila would make it._

_Mother had just finished bandaging Ila's wound when Father rushed over and told us to run. I looked over the ridge and saw a band of raiders coming towards us. Ila had passed out so Father scooped her up while I grabbed Ham's hand and began to run. I was tired and my chest had begun to ache but I did not stop running, even when we crossed into the charred land. It was there that Father yelled at me to stop, and when I did he shoved Ila into my arms. She let out a moan of pain but thankfully did not wake up. I ran with her until I caught up to Mother and Ham but then we all came to a stop. Behind Father rose a ginormous rock monster. Ham and I screamed while Mother yelled for Father to warn him but it was too late. The monster had swung one of its many arms and hit Father in the head, knocking him out. Dragging Father by the leg, it grabbed the rest of us with another hand and trapped us in a deep pit where we were to be kept prisoner. _

_I put Ila down where it seemed soft and went to set up a tent with Ham while Mother checked on Father and fed baby Japheth. Ila let out a cry so Mother and I ran to check on her. She had woken up and was covered in sweat. Mother said she had a fever so I gave her a little water and then took Japheth from Mother so she could change Ila's bloodstained bandages and try to cool her._

_It was not long after that that Father woke up. When he did he tried to convince the rock me, Watchers Mother told us, to free us but they would not budge. Night came soon and as scared as I was, exhaustion took over and I fell right to sleep. Not long after I felt someone shaking me and opened my eyes to see Mother standing over me, Japheth slung to her chest._

_ "__Wake up Shem, it is time for us to leave." She said. _

_I got up sleepy and once we were all packed one of the Watchers picked us up and took us all out of the pit. Once we were out we followed him quickly so we would not be caught. He told us about how the Watchers came down to our world and how they helped Adam and Eve. _

_It was a long walk, but finally we spotted Grandfather's mountain. Father told us that our great-grandfather, Methuselah, was the oldest man alive and that the creator was sending us to him for help. After camp was set up Father came to me and told me that I was to accompany him up the mountain. Part of me wanted to stay with Ila and make sure she was alright, but Mother told me that her fever had broken and she was doing much better, so I left with Father to climb the mountain and meet Grandfather._

S S S S S S S S

-Shem-

Mother still did not want us to go, but she knew we were no matter what she said, so she decided that it was best to teach me how to deliver a baby. It was not very hard, all you have to do is wait until the shoulders are out and then you can pull it out. She told me to check that the cord is not around its neck and if it is to just unravel it. The fact that I would have to deliver my child and care for Ila by myself was terrifying. If something were to happen I would be alone and without help. Ila was scared too but she told me that she trusted me. Mother said that women's bodies know what to do and Ila just has to listen to hers.

"Shem, did you hear me?" Mother asked me.

"Sorry, what?" I replied.

"I said that maybe you should ask Ham to go with you." She explained.

The second before she was drilling Ila on what Ham was talking to her about and now she was trying to get him to leave.

"I do not think that is a wise idea. Ham wanted a wife and a family and he was denied that. Being alone with Shem and I and a baby will only make him more bitter." Ila said.

I loved Ila's levelheadedness. She was the one person who could stay calm and unbiased in a conversation.

"Well I think that he just wants off of this ark." Mother stated.

"We all do." I replied.

Mother got up in a huff and walked away, muttering words I could not hear. I could not help but let out a little chuckle, which awarded me a death glare from Ila.

"She is your mother Shem; the least you can do is be kind to her now. She does not want to let you go." She said.

"Ila, my love," I said taking her hands in mine and staring into her eyes, "I am a grown man, about to have a child of my own. Mother is going to have to accept that and if she cannot then it is her problem, not mine or yours."

She let out a sigh and leaned forward until her forehead was touching mine. I kissed her nose and we stayed like this for a few moments before she went back to crushing and sorting herbs.

"I am going to find Ham and Japheth." I told her.

Getting up, I kissed the top of her head and ventured up to the roof of the ark, where I found my brothers throwing rocks into the sea.

"The bigger the rock is, the bigger splash it will make!" Japheth explained excitedly.

"Really? Show me." I told him.

He found a big rock from the pile in between him and Ham and dropped it into the water. It was a light rock, since he could lift it with no problem, probably a lava rock, so the splash it made was mostly from the drop.

"Look Japheth, you see this rock? It is smaller than the rock you just dropped, but it is denser. The size of the rock will not affect the splash as much as the weight will." I told him.

I took the smaller rock and dropped it into the water. Proving what I had said, it made a bigger splash with more rings around it.

"But," I heard Ila say from behind me, "if it is a tiny rock, no matter how heavy it is it will not make a big splash, it will just sink."

"You should not be climbing up the stairs." I told her.

She glared at me harshly before taking a dense pebble and dropping it in. The pebble did not indeed make a splash, it just merely sank.

So this is a looonnnggg one! Please let me know what you think!


	11. Chapter 10

-Ila-

Ten more weeks to go. It was terrifying. In ten weeks Shem and I were going to be in charge of a new life. I know Shem is going to be a good father; he was wonderful with Japheth when we were kids, as he still is now, and he spent hours talking to my belly. I have a feeling that I will be a good mother, but part of me still doubted myself. I love the child growing inside me, I know I do, but there are still moments where I wish I was not carrying it. I would rather never have children, then give birth to a child only to have it murdered minutes later.

Lying in mine and Shem's tent, I put my hands on my belly and tried to picture what my baby will look like. If it is a girl, I would want her to look like me but have Shem's loyalty and strength, and if it is a boy, I would want him to look like Shem but have my kindness and wit.

"Shem." I called out.

A second later he ran into our tent looking frazzled and out of breath.

"What?" He asked in between pants.

"It is not moving." I told him.

"What are you talking about Ila?" He replied.

"The baby is not moving." I told him.

"Maybe it is asleep." He suggested, lying down next to me.

I shook my head, a few tears rolling down my face. Shem kissed me and then moved his head down to my belly.

"Wake up baby." He said to it. "Your mother is worried."

As if it heard Shem, I felt a little nudge on my side. I started to cry happy tears as Shem held me close.

"Sh Ila, it is alright." He said. "I told you everything was fine."

I nodded as I continued to cry. Shem just held me close, not saying a word. I knew part of him wanted to laugh at me, just as I wanted to laugh at me. I was being ridiculous but I could not help it. I had no control over my emotions and all I did was sleep and cry nowadays. Shem did not seem to mind though, which Mother told me is a good thing.

"Why don't we get some fresh air love?" Shem suggested.

"That sounds nice." I replied.

Shem helped me and after he wrapped me in what seemed like a hundred coats, we walked hand in hand out onto the deck. It was nighttime now and it was beautiful out. The stars filled the skies and shone enough light that we did not need a tzohar lamp.

"When Ham and I were younger, before we found you, Father used to have a sleep outside some nights and he would tell us that the stars were angels sent from the Heavens to protect us." Shem told me, snuggling me close to him.

"Like the Watchers." I said.

"Exactly like the Watchers." He replied.

We sat against the deck in a calm silence, just gazing up at the stars. It was not long after we came out that I heard Shem's even breathing and turned over to see he was fast asleep.

S S S S S S S S

-Shem-

I did not realize Ila and I had fallen asleep outside until I woke up with a stiff neck a from leaning on the wall. I could not feel my right arm and right leg, and I opened my eyes to see that Ila was on top of my right side. I nudged her a few times before she woke up.

"What?" She mumbled.

"We fell asleep Ila, and you are on top of me." I told her.

"I can feel that." She said grinding into me.

I let out a moan as she kissed my jaw.

"Ila we can't." I said.

Ila completely ignored me and pushing my trousers down, she lowered herself onto me. We both moaned as she began to move up and down. I kept my eye on the hatchway to make sure no one saw us, and thankfully no one did. When we walked into the Hearth a little later, no one batted an eye.


	12. AN

So I just realized that my computer has been auto correcting the word wiping with whipping. I apologize that I did not catch it earlier but hopefully you

all were able to figure it out!


	13. Chapter 11

-Shem-

"Breath Ila, it will be over soon." I told my wife.

Ila had woken up in the middle of the night with false labor again. It was hard to see her in so much pain but I had to stay calm for her. Mother said that Ila only has about seven or eight weeks left and the fake contractions were to be expected. She usually helps Ila through them, but Mother believes that it is best for me to be alone with her since all she will have is me when she is truly in labor. The pains had been coming more and more in the past months, and poor Ila was at her breaking point.

"Ow Shem make them stop!" Ila cried.

"I know it hurts but they will be over soon love." I said comfortingly.

She was on all fours, rocking back and forth while I was kneading her back. This was the position that was comfortable for Ila, though her belly was starting to get in the way. I kept telling her that she was doing great and that it will all be over soon, but she had already worked herself up, like she did every time.

"I cannot do it; I do not want to do it!" She cried.

I brushed her hair back as I whispered into her ear, "You are so brave Ila. You can do anything, including this. And when you really are in labor, we will have our baby in the end."

Finally, after a few hours, her pains stopped. Ila was exhausted and fell right to sleep as soon as it was over. I cleaned her face with a wet cloth and covered her with a blanket before venturing out of the tent.

"Is she alright?" Ham asked me.

He was sitting by the furnace, holding a cup of what I suppose was tea. His eyes looked sunken and distant.

"She will be; it is painful. I just wish they would stop." I replied.

"And how are you?" He asked, handing me a cup.

"It hurts to see her in pain, of course, but I cannot imagine what she is going through." I told him.

I took a sip of tea and leaned against the furnace. It was warm. Father had built it so thick that it would not burn you if you touched. It was not on now, but I could still feel the heat from when Ham made the tea. I found it quiet comforting. I was suddenly finding it hard to keep my eyes open.

"Shem." I heard Ila call from our tent.

I took a second cup of tea and went to see what I needed. When I went into the tent, she was lying on her side, curled up as best she could. I crossed over to her and handed her the tea.

"What is it love?" I asked her.

"I feel sick." She croaked. "My back hurts as well."

I brought a bucket over for her and wiped some sweat off of her face. I held her hand in one of mine and used the other one to rub her back. After Ila threw up a few times, she fell back to sleep and exhausted, I fell asleep as well.

When I woke up, Ila was not in the tent. As much as I wanted to find her, I did not want to get up.

"Morning love." Ila said, walking into the tent.

She had two bowls with her and handed one to me. It was filled with berries. I do not know how Mother preserved them, but she did. I scarfed down the bowl while Ila looked at me in disgust.

"You eat like an animal." She told me.

"Well I was up all night long with you and I guess I did not realize I was hungry." I told her. "How are you now?"

"My back still hurts, but I feel better now." She told me with a sigh.

"It will be over soon." I said.

"Yes and then I have to actually push it out my body." She said bitterly.

"Mother did it three times Ila." I reminded her.

"I know and she has already told me that it is all worth it in the end. But Mother never had to worry about her child possibly being murdered my it's grandfather now did she?" Ila replied.

I pulled her close to me and kissed her forehead and then her lips before taking the bowls and heading out of the tent.

"Well look who finally decided to grace us with his presence." Mother said as I walked into the Hearth.

"Long night Mother." I replied angrily.

I dropped the bowls into their bucket and turned to head back to my tent.

"Shem can you help me with my flute?" Japheth asked me.

"Yes, of course Japheth." I told him.

I had been teaching him how to carve a flute in the past few months, and I had to admit that he was doing a very good job at it. Mother was not too excited about him using a knife, but there was no other way to carve wood.

"I will go check on Ila." Mother said after a while.

Ila! I had completely forgotten about her. She did not seem to miss me either. I went on helping Japheth carve his flute until I heard retching noises coming from our tent.

When I reached the tent I could see Ila huddled over a bucket while Mother held back her hair.

"Here Shem, wipe some sweat off of her face." Mother told me, handing me a cloth.

I took the cloth and did what Mother told me. At my touch Ila looked up and I saw desperation and misery in her eyes.

S

-Ila-

Shem was incredible. He was calm, somehow, and was the only thing that was helping me through these days. Mother was worried about me, and even though she never said anything, I knew what I was experiencing was not exactly normal. I was sick every day and was experiencing the false labor pains at least three times a week.

I was watching Shem sleep, as creepy as that sounds. He was so beautiful, yet he looked so stressed nowadays. His eyes were always red and sleepy. He had worry lines around them and on his forehead. Truthfully, he almost looked as bad as I know I did. I definitely looked thirty-three weeks pregnant. I could not see my face, but I am sure it looked terrible. I was sick all the time so that would naturally make it paler and thinner. My belly was beyond enormous, as were my breasts and my feet. I did not know how Shem could still love me. I screamed at him all day long, and called him horrible things.

"Now I know what it feels like to be stared at." Shem mumbled sleepily. "You were right, it is not fun."

"You just looked so peaceful." I replied, laying my head on his chest.

"You seem better." He said.

"I feel better." I told him.

"How much better?" He asked me as he playfully bit my neck.

"Not that much better." I replied strictly.

"I am not doing anything." He said innocently.

"Please Shem." I replied humorously. "You know exactly what you are doing."

"All I am doing is kissing my beautiful wife's neck." He said.

"Mhmm." I replied.

I had grabbed my stitching and continued to work on my dress while Shem tried to plead his case. Once he realized it was useless, he lied back down and fell right to sleep. As much as I love Shem, I do enjoy silence as well. Silence is peaceful. With all that was going on I really did need the silence. I looked over at Shem again; he was out. It always amazed how quickly and easily he could sleep. He could sleep so heavily, yet wake at the slightest presence.

I was beginning to feel a bit puckish, so I decided to go to the Hearth to get some bread. When I entered, I saw Mother sitting on one of the cushions; she was crying. She tried to wipe her tears when she saw me, but she knew I had already seen them.

"Ila, what is it? Is everything alright?" She asked me frantically.

"I just wanted a snack." I told her.

"You gave me quite a fright Daughter. You look like a ghost." She told me.

"Are you alright Mother?" I asked her curiously.

"I am fine, lonely, but fine." She replied. "Is Shem asleep?"

"Of course he is." I said, grabbing some flatbread.

The flatbread was warm which meant that Mother had baked it recently. It smelled wonderful, like fresh herbs. I ate them greedily.

"He was up for a bit, but he went back to sleep when I refused to lie with him." I told her.

"Ah I see. You wounded his pride." She said.

"Well hopefully it will help deflate his head." I told her.

Mother and I spent the rest of the night sharing stories and laughing at poor Shem.


End file.
